Provenance

Bequeathed by the artist in 1816 to James White of Exeter (1744–1825), on whose death it passed to Towne’s residuary legatee John Herman Merivale (1779–1844) and his successors. Merivale’s granddaughters Maria Sophia Merivale (1853–1928) and Judith Ann Merivale (1860–1945), both of Oxford, inherited the drawing in May 1915 within a sketchbook containing FT733 to FT751. Probably the book was among the “two small sketchbooks and five small drawings late in date” that Judith Merivale sold to Squire Gallery in 1945 for £50. This drawing was on sale at the Fine Art Society in 1946 and they sold it on 21 or 23 January 1946 to Agnew’s (no.4401) for £31 10s. Agnew’s sold it on 22 August 1947 for £39 18s. to George Kenneth Galliers-Pratt. This is probably the Near Dulwich College that was sold at an unidentified auction house on 7 October 1976, lot 278, for £220, and the drawing was also was offered for sale at Sotheby’s on 9 November 1995, lot 53.